It has been said that some trust in their "sixth" sense, yet what if any validity is there for such a comment?
We have our recognised 5 senses, yet even those are wanting insofar as trust is concerned
Without smell, there is little if any taste
Schizophrenics "hear" voices which are non-existent
A leper has little sense of touch
Then there is the comment "you are seeing things", and I daresay that many of us have at times been puzzled when looking at something, only to realise that our eyes are playing tricks on us
I hear things that many others don't, known as "tinitus", getting used to it you put it into the background (which of course it is)
Last but not least is that commodity "common sense" sadly lacking so much in todays world!

To answer your question, commenting that one trusts their sixth sense is perfectly valid. It's a comment much akin to those who profess a belief in God.

I see the human brain as a central processing unit that is fed data by human senses and sensitivities. The sensors are of varying quality from person to person, and the processing unit could be anything from a 4-banger calculator to a sophisticated quad-core 64bit desktop. The quality of the sensors and the processor does not make the trust in them any less valid in my opinion. A human being functions quite well regardless of how they are equipped.

Now, how they integrate with the rest of society is quite another issue.

Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what the hell happened.

I think there are times, like those experienced by a gambler, when we are on a "run"
No matter what one does, it turns up "trumps"
Then it all turns to custard!
"Know when to fold them" an apt expression?

To answer your question, commenting that one trusts their sixth sense is perfectly valid. It's a comment much akin to those who profess a belief in God.

While I appreciate your comment, what sort of percentage of "hits" is required to validate a"belief"Do the "hits" require substantiating/corrobarating evidence?

I see the human brain as a central processing unit that is fed data by human senses and sensitivities. The sensors are of varying quality from person to person, and the processing unit could be anything from a 4-banger calculator to a sophisticated quad-core 64bit desktop. The quality of the sensors and the processor does not make the trust in them any less valid in my opinion. A human being functions quite well regardless of how they are equipped.

Now, how they integrate with the rest of society is quite another issue.

Therein lies the crux of the matter
If it harms none, does it matter/have rellevance?

I think everyone is born with a sixth sense whether they are aware of it or not. It is part of the human psyche that allows them to the world of the unseen encounter, the unheard communication, and the unfelt touch. At one time or another, everyone has used their sixth sense. Those that can’t recall using that special sense are not aware of the signs, or because of fear and ignorance are in denial.

You calling me stupid do not make me stupid; it makes you a person calling me stupid.

I agree with ohlia about the sixth sense. I've been able to develop mine considerably over the years, but I still haven't mastered it, or can use it 100%.

For instance, every time I've had a close call with disaster, usually while driving, I've had a premonition of it in advance. In the past, I didn't recognize the premonition as such until after the fact, or a close call with the automobile.

But, after considering it for many years, I have developed that sixth sense to where I recognize the feeling, and take evasive action before something happens. Usually, when I get that feeling, I slow down and I am extra careful watching for hazards. This has helped me several times, but not always. If I am tired or distracted, the premonition is often too weak to register with my conscious mind, and it goes unheeded. That is not good.

My wife has a more developed sixth sense than I do; and one time when the children were small she had them come into the house from playing, early. Shortly after that a large tree fell right into our yard in the exact spot where the children had been playing. Had she not taken them inside early, for no apparent reason, they would have been crushed by the tree. We never forget that incident.

I visualize the material human brain more like a router than a stand alone computer receiving inputs from 5 senses. As a router, the brain receives and sends communications, and our computer may not be entirely the brain. The mind and brain may be remotely located and communicating through the router, like Wi Fi . This sounds surreal, but if you think about it, it makes more sense.

Sixty miles per gallon? Not really. Cheap? Nope. Phoney and stupid? Yes, the Prius is global warming on 4 wheels.

Skinjob wrote:I agree with ohlia about the sixth sense. I've been able to develop mine considerably over the years, but I still haven't mastered it, or can use it 100%.

For instance, every time I've had a close call with disaster, usually while driving, I've had a premonition of it in advance. In the past, I didn't recognize the premonition as such until after the fact, or a close call with the automobile.

But, after considering it for many years, I have developed that sixth sense to where I recognize the feeling, and take evasive action before something happens. Usually, when I get that feeling, I slow down and I am extra careful watching for hazards. This has helped me several times, but not always. If I am tired or distracted, the premonition is often too weak to register with my conscious mind, and it goes unheeded. That is not good.

My wife has a more developed sixth sense than I do; and one time when the children were small she had them come into the house from playing, early. Shortly after that a large tree fell right into our yard in the exact spot where the children had been playing. Had she not taken them inside early, for no apparent reason, they would have been crushed by the tree. We never forget that incident.

I visualize the material human brain more like a router than a stand alone computer receiving inputs from 5 senses. As a router, the brain receives and sends communications, and our computer may not be entirely the brain. The mind and brain may be remotely located and communicating through the router, like Wi Fi . This sounds surreal, but if you think about it, it makes more sense.

We had this discussion elsewhere in this forum. The concept of consciousness was proposed therein to be the only reality. Consciousness transcends the mind and exists independently of it. If that is the assumption, then I can go along with the brain being a router more so than a central processor. But, I hasten to add that even routers have memory and decision making capability much like a CPU. The difference being that the router's purpose in being is to provide connections to that great unknown on the other end of your modem.

Whether you see the brain as a router or a CPU, the sensory inputs can be deceptive, i.e. allowing spam through. That is not to say the senses are defective, but as skinjob points out, it may require some training (filtering) to separate the spam from the useful content.

ESP refers to that which is beyond the traditional 5 senses, and instinct falls into that category in my opinion. There is no equivalent in the computer world - yet. Trusting one's instincts seems to be difficult for humans, but it is exactly that which has preserved all the other animal species up to this point in time. The survival instinct is very powerful, even if we can't quantify it in the logical mind. So it is with ESP.

Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what the hell happened.

I'm not sure if we have only a 6th sense, might even have a 7th and 8th. Depends how you define a "sense".

I think much of suppressing it came as faith in the unknown started to waiver. Ghosts, nymphs, spirits and sprites has no place in the world any more. The simple explanation of a protecting spirit isn't enough for us, we must have a scientific reason for everything and so we don't listen to things without "explanations"

and then there are those who chooses not to see it. I know people who's 6th sense was to see when people killed themselves, and there was always atleast three suicides there yearly... with a population roughly around 1200-1800 people. She chose to ignore it, and I can see why!